Apparatus for hardening the runners of ice skates



y 1929- H.IDOR'NSEIF 1,711,633

APPARATUS FOR HARDENING THE RUNNERS OF ICE SKATES Filed March 24, 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet l May 7, 1929. H. DORNSEIF 1 3 APPARATUS FOR HARDENING THE RUNNERS OF ICE SKATEs Filed March 24, 1927 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 //a a Jar/2. 6% 's W 7 Fi i-arr ey y 1929- H. DORNSEIF 1,111,633

APPARATUS FOR HARDENING THE RUNNERS OF ICE SKATES Filed March 24, 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented May 7,1929.

UNITED STATES v 1,711,633 PATENT OFFICE.

HUGO DORNSEIF, OF RADEVOBMWALD. GERMANY.

APPARATUS FOR, HARDENING THE RUNNERS OF ICE SKATES.

Application filed March 24, 1927, Serial No. 177,984, and in Germany March 30, 1926.

- edges (which are usually widened) must be 7 age.

as hard as possible (glass-hard) while, secondly, the remaining parts of the blade must be considerably less hard than the edges in orderthat they may beable to resist break For this reason skate blades have hitherto been made of rolled iron and a thin, hard layer of steel has been welded on to the widened edge of the blade. Apart from manufacturing difiiculties in correctly fixing this layer of steel and the unreliability arising therefrom, there is also,the great disadvantage thatythe kinds of steel suitable for thewelding do not acquire the high degree of hardness desired and also can not" acquire it because, owing to the very different temperature co-efiicients of expansion of steel and iron, shape take, place on hardening the steel, which necessitate a subsequent adjustment of the skate of which the edge has been hardened. The skates therefore have indeed the desired resistance to breaking but do not hardness of edge, so. resistance to wear at possess the necessary that the desired high the edge is lacking. It must also be added that skates having a welded steel edge are very expensive, not only on account of the difiiculty of manufacture but also because welding.

All these drawbacks are avoided'in the new skate with hardened edge. invention the entire blade of the skate consists of one piece of( good material (tool steel) capable of being hardened. It is, however, made glass-hard exclusively at the edge, i. e., the parts which run on the ice. I remaining parts of the blade on the other hand have the natural hardness of the material. i

The manufacture ofthe new skate can be effected by heating the edge by jets of flame, the remaining parts of the blade away from the edge being protected, and then suddenly ooling i by means of a cooling and hardening liquid, for example water. When carrying out this process the edge can be heated simultaneously along its entire length and cooling can be effected by immersion in a hardening bath. A better way,'however, is to heat the edge by means of a jet of flame of limited extent proceeding continuously from one end tothe other but only heatir g considerable changes in' According to the ture for which purpose The that fresh cooling liquid of uniform temperature can always be employed with the result that a uniform degree of hardness is obtained with all skates. Further, owing to the fact that not only the intensity of the jet of flame but also the speed with which the blade of the skate is moved across the jet can be regulated, it is possible to regulate the depth to which the hardening effects penetrate, in such a manner .thatthe edge is made glasshard to a depth which is suflicient for the sharp edges to be maintained for a long time while the rest of the blade retains its original, soft condition. For chilling the heated portions of the edge two streams of water are preferably employed which act on the edge from opposite sides and at right angles to its longitudinal direction. means it is possible to regulate the cooling in such a manner that, on the one hand, distortion or bending of the skate-blade is prepreliminary stages of manufacture is againput right. only the best Swedish steel can be used for In order that, when the edge is heated, the heat conducted to it may not spread to the remaining parts of the blade of the skate the edge must be heated as quickly as possible. It is advantageous therefore to employ jets of flame of very high temperathe burner is .best supplied with a mixture of acetylene gas and oxygen.

Two constructional embodiments of apparatus for carrying out the new process are illustrated diagrammatically by .way of example in the drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the first example on a greatly reduced scale, omitting the burner supporting and actuating means,

Fig. 1 is a plan view/of the burner and related parts, i

Fig. 1 is a cross-section of the same,

Fig. 2 a cross-section through the workpiece holder of this device on a somewhat greater scale than in Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 a front elevation of the device in accordance with the second example on a reduced scale,

Fig. 4 a side elevation, and

Fig. 5 a view of a portion of the driving.

- and is of such dimensions that the unwidened part of the blade just passes into the slot while the widened edge of the blade projects outwardly beyond the circumference of the wheel. The skate-blades are inserted at regular intervals in the slot 0 and are fixed in it, for which purpose a side clamping screw f is provided for fixing each blade.

At one 'side of the trough and just above its edge there is provided a long, narrow burner g which. extends over the entire length of the edge of the blade and preferably somewhat beyond it. This burner has a large number of openings directed towards the wheel 6 at whicli'small jets of flame burn. The burner is advantageously moved backwards and forwards 1n the longw tudinal direction of the skate-blade through a distance which is equal to the distance apart of the individual openings -or the width of the cone of flame, that is to say, in-

the' exampleillustrated in Fig. 1, between the limits bounded by the dotted lines I, II, so that all parts of the blade are uniformly swept by the individual cones of flame. In this way the thickened edge of theblade is heated uniformly and so quickly that the heat cannot be transferred to the other parts of the blade which lie protected in the slot in the wheel. The burner 9 may be constructed and operatively mounted so as to be reciprocated by hand or by power mechanism. When operated by power mechanism the burner, as shown in Figures 1 and 1 may bemounted in a suitably supported guideway g andcoupled by a con neoting rod g to a crank shaft driven by chain and sprocket gearing 9*, or other suitable gearing, from a suitable power source.

The power driving arrangement may be such that the burner will be reciprocatecl either continuously or only at such a time as when a skate is in position to be heated. thereby. When the edge has been heated to thedesired degree the wheel is quickly turned in the direction of the arrow through such an angle that the heated edge is brought into the hardening bath and the following skateblade is brought in front of "the burner in place of the former blade. The skate blade which is dipped into the liquid assumes the high degree of hardness desired at the strongly heated edge owing to the chilling of the liquid on the other side of the wheel when the wheel is turned and can be exchanged for a fresh unhardened blade which on turning the wheel further is brought to the heating place. a

The movement of the wheel 'whilegit is being turned preferably takes place rather qllliickly so that no substantial cooling of t e heated blade can occur on its way into the liquid and, on the other hand, the fresh blade is quickly brought in front of the flame, so that heat losses do not occur in the interval and an economical consumption of fuel results. i

The means for turning the wheel can'be of any desired known form, and as shown in Figure 1, may consist of a sprocket gear I) fixed on the axle of the wheel and driven by a chain 6 from any suitable power source in such manner that the wheel may be moved each time the required distance; to bring a skate in position to be acted upon by the burner g and held in such'position during the heating action. The turning mechanisnh is best arranged in such a manner that the turn-.

' ture of the blade of the skate. If desired,

however, the diameter of the wheel may be different and, at the places where the blades are fastened separate pieces which correspond in shape to the shape of the blade can be inserted. in this case the slot 0 need not extend around the whole (circumference of the wheel, instead a large number of separate grooves or slots each of which is suitable for the reception of a skate blade may be provided. 1 V

. Further theslots forthe reception of the blade instead of being arranged in .the circumferential direction of the wheel could also be arranged at right angles thereto, that is to say, besides one another parallel to the axis of thewheel. In this case the diameter of the wheel would be considerably reduced. In the example illustratedin Figs. 35, 1 and 2 are two fixed cheeks which are arranged at a distance apart which is equal to the thicknessof a skate-blade, and the resulting slot 3 serves the urpose of receiving the unwidened part of the skate-blade 4 to be treated. The front'of the. cheeks 1 and 2- is curved to correspond with the curvature of the edge 5 of the skate-blade, so that when the blades 4t are inserted from above into the slot 3 the strengthened edge 5 projects forwardly out of the slot 3 and only this portion of the blade is heated by a jet of flame, as hereinafter described. The cheeks 1 and 2 serve the purpose of a lateral protection for the unwidened parts of the blade during the heating process, so that these parts therefore cannot be touched by the flame.

The blades 4 are moved along the slot- 3 by suitable feeding means until they reach the lower end of the slot. For this purpose there are provided inside the checks 1 and 2, and at both sides of the slot several pairs (in the example illustrated three pairs) of opposing rollers 7, 8, 9 by which the workpiece 4 is drawn alongin the slot During this movement the work-pieces are prevented in a very simple manner from being pressed forwardly out of the slot by means of a number of convex rollers 11, 12, 13 arranged at the side of the slot. 3 against which the edge 5 bears.

The rollers 7, S and 9 are fastened respectively to the front end of shafts 14, 15,

16 which are journalled in the body of the checks 1, 2 and carry at their other ends spur wheels 17 18, ,19 respectively which are themselves driven through the agency of two coupling wheels 20, 21 by means of a worm-wheel 22. The spur wheels 17, 18, 19, fixed on the shafts 14, 15, 16, are all of the same diameter so that the work-piece 4 which is held between several pairs of rollers can be fed forward quite uniformly.

The worm wheel 22 co-acts with the worm 23 the shaft 24 of which carries a disc 25 at one end. On the fiat surface 26 of this disc 25,. which is constructed as a friction disc, there runs a driving friction roller 27, which, for the purpose of regulating the speed o f the drive, is movably held on the main shaft 28 which is driven by means of a belt 30. ,The roller 27 can be moved back' wards and forwards radially over the disc 26 by means of a rbd 31 which is provided at its free end with a handle 32 and of which the other end 29 is forked to engaged the roller 27, so that any adjustment of the speed at which the workpiece is fed forwards as may be desirable or necessary, can be made in small steps. The main shaft 28 is carried in two bearings, 33, 34, which are provided in an arm 35 of an upright 37 which is fastened by screws 36 to the side of one of the cheeks 2.

A burner 38, which serves the purpose of heating the widened edge 5lof the skateblade 4 which projects out of the slot 3, is

arranged at about the middle of the two cheeks 1, 2, The free end of the burner 38 is provided with two branch tubes 39, 40 for connection to the air and gas supply, the admission of which can be regulatedby cocks 41, 42 respectively. The front portion of the burner 38 is bent downwards so that the actual body 43 of the burner can be cooled in manner known by means of liquid supplied through the tube 44. Below the body 43 of the burner there is arranged a device for supplying cooling liquid, the purpose of which is to chill the heated parts of the edge 5 immediately after the-heating process is concluded. To this end there are provided two water pipes 50, 51, having regulating cocks 47, 48 respectively, the front ends of which pipes are, connected together by means of a cross pipe 52, which is held in position by means of a downwardly pro ecting nose 53 of the burner body 43. The cross pipe 52 is provided opposite the slot 3 with a slot into which the heated edge enters, so that when the device is in operation the water from the two tubes 50, 51 can act from opposite sides on the heated blade and coolit instantaneously.-

In order that the body of the cheeks may not be affected by the powerful jet of flame chambers 55 and 56 for the reception of cooling water are provided at the sides of the slot 3 which is conducted to and from them through the pipes 57, 58.

For protecting the burner and the-tube 44 which is inserted in the burner body '43, an insulating plate I) which holds back the flame is arranged above the body 43, this plate also prevents the flame from striking upwards and heating any parts of the blade edge which are above the burner.

The method of operation of the device is as follows:

The work-pieces, i. e. the blades 4 are adv-antageously introduced into the slot 3 with their points in front in such a manner that their widened edge projects out in front of the working side of the cheeks 1 and 2. The convex rollers 11, 12, 13 arranged over the slot '3 prevent the blade 4 from falling forwardly out of the slot 3. The work-piece is drawn downwards, and brought'in front of the burner body 43 by the upper pair of rollers 7, the periphery of which is preferably covered with a layer of rubber 60 in order to grip the work-piece 4 more securely.

When in front of the burner, the edge 5 which projects out of the slot 3 is continuously heated from one end-to the other by the flame as the blade moves steadily forwards, while the other parts. of the blade 4 are protected by the cheeks .l and 2 so that they cannot be touched by the flame. The steady forward feed of the work-piece 4 can be altered so as to proceed at different speeds by adjusting the driving roller 27 which coacts with the disc 25. v I

Directly after the heating process during which always a portion only of the length of the blade-edge is operated on, the heated parts are cooled by the streams ofwater from the cross pipe 52 which impinge on the blade-edge. Ashereinbefore mentioned, the

cooling can be regulated in such a manner ing previous treatment is'again remedied.

Thisis due tothe fact that the edge ef the blade as it passes the flame is heated in sections and is then immediately cooled. Finally the work-piece falls out of the slot 3 into a container 61 filled with liquid from which the finished work-pieces having glasshard edges are removed.

Owingto the possibility of being able to effect various adjustments the apparatus operates with exactness and great reliability.

7 Further, owing to the fact that the workpieces can'be introduced into the slot 3 so that they follow on directly one after another (even when one or more work-pieces are in the slot it is possible to carry out -the process extraordinarily quickly. a

The second example also may be modified in many points, for example the work-pieces can be clamped in the work-piece-holder and.

.instead of the'work-pieces being movable,

the burner and the spraying device can be arranged to be movable in such a manner that they. can be guided from one end to.

the other of the edge of the skate-blade to be hardened. Further, the feeding rollers instead (if-being driven by friction gearing could also be driven by other suitable form of gearing. Further, the work-piece holder 1 according to Figs. 1 and 2 consisting of a rotating drum .or wheel can also be em-,

ployed with advantage in the example ac-" of the flame acting on the ends of the edge.

For example, in the form of construction described with reference to Fi s. 1 and 2 in which the edge of the blade of the skate is heated simultaneously over its entire length, a burner can be employed of which the length is somewhat less than the length of the edge and which is moved backwards and forwards in the longitudinal direction of the blade of the skate between two limits defined by the ends of the edge of the blade. The result of this arrangement is that, -during the-backward and forward movement of the burner the flames are alternately removed from the one or other end of the edge so that these ends are exposed to the action of the flame to a somewhat less extent than the rest of the edge. Or, when employing a burner in accordance with Fig. 1 extending over the entire length of the edge, theburner can be so arranged that smaller jets of flame are formed at its end than at the rest of the burner which also produces less heating of the ends of the edge.

If, however, theblade is heated, as described With reference to Figs. 3-5, in such a manner that the blade of the skate is 'passed with its edge under a burner which extends only over a portion of the length of the skate-blade, then the procedure can be such that each time an end of the edge of theblade comes under the burner the speed of the skate-blade is temporarilyincreased and so the duration of the action of the flame on the ends of the edge is shortened. A simcording to Figs;85. The drum or whe l -ilar result can be attained by weakening I I is not ,then moved intermittently in the man.-

amples described, or whether it.is of the blade.

ner described with reference to Figs. 1 and 2 but is rotated continuously,

' For the purposes of the invention it is of 'no importance whether the edge of the blade, is widened outas has been assumed in them;-

same width as the remaining portions of the In the hereinbefore described methods of carrying thenew process into operation,

when the edge is heated approximately the same amount of heat is conducted to all parts of the edge. It could therefore happenpar ticularly when the ends of the blade are tape-red or reduced, that the ends of the blade-edge, owing to the fact that it is possible to conduct 'awaythe heat to the rest of the edge on one side only, would becomejoverheated and would consequently either be burnt or lose. their shape owing to becbming soft. This danger can be prevented, in accordance withthe invention, by conducting a smaller amount'of heat to the ends of the edge'iwhen the edge is heated than to the remsiiningparts of the edge of the blade. This can be done either by shortening the duration of the action of the flame on the ends of the edge or by reducing the intensity "the edge of the blade. is prevented and therefore burning orsoftening at the ends of the blade is avoided.

Obviously the above described examples could be reversed in such a way that when the entire length of the'edge is heated simultaneously the blade is moved. backwards and forwards instead of the burner and when a burner which extends only over a part of the length of-the edge is employed, the burner is moved in the longitudinal direction of the edge instead of the blade.

i 1. An apparatus-for Hardening the runners of skates, comprising aholder formed to cover the parts-of the skate-blade except the runner edge, leaving only said edge exposed,-

means for moving said holder" for feeding the bladeforward to treatment positions, a burner arranged-in the pathof feed movement of the skate-bladeandprovided with openings for projecting small jets. of flame In either case over-heating of the ends of against the exposed edge of the blade, means for moving said burner backwards and for- Wvards in the longitudinal direction of the skate, and a receptacle for hardening liquidarranged in the path of feed movement ot the skate beyond the burner.

2. An apparatus tor. hardening the'runmore of ice skates, comprising means for enclosing and shielding the body of the skate so as to leave onlythe runner. edge of the skate exposed. a heater tor-heating the exposed edge of the skate, means for producing relative motion between the skate so 'enclosed and shielded and the heater so as to shift the skate into and out of the heating zone of the heater, and means for cooling the heated runner edge when heated to a predetermined temperature. 3. An apparatus for hardening the runners of ce skates, comprlsing means for enclosing and shielding the body of. the

skate so as to leave onlythe runner edge of the skate exposed, a burner for projecting spaced jets of flame along the runner edge from end to end thereof, means for producing relative movement. between the skate so enclosed and shielded and the burner so as to shift the skate into and out of the path of the burner,-'means for reciprocating the burner during its flame playing action on the runner edge, and means for cooling the edge of the skate when heatedto a predetermined degreeI- 4. An apparatus for hardening the runner edges ofice skates, comprising a holder. channeled to receive and shield the body of the skate, leaving onl the runner edge of. 'the skate exposed, a urner for projecting a series of'spaced jets of flame against the edge of the bu-rnerirom end to end thereof,

means for moving the holder so vas to shift the skate into and out of the pathof the burner, means for reciprocating the burner while in action to causethc flames to besprayed uniformly ovcr the runner edge, and means for cooling the edge of the skate when heated .to a predetermined degree.

5. An apparatus of the character described comprising a receptacle containing a cooling liquid, a rotary holder provided.

with peripheral channeled portions for receiving and shielding the body portions of skates arranged at predetermined intervals,

leaving only the runner edges of the skates exposed, and a burner arranged in the path of rotation of the holder soas to permit the quickly shifted by, rotation of the holder out of heating position and immersed in the cooling liquid in the receptacle.

6. In an apparatus for hardening the run-, ners of ice skates,a burner for heating the runner edge of a skate, means for enclosing and'shielding the body portion of a skate to'be exposed to theaction of the burner sofas to leave only the runner edgeof the skateiexposed for action thereon by the burner, means for cooling the edgeof the skate, and means for feeding the skate to successive positions to be acted upon by the burner and the cooling means,

In testimony whereof I afi'ix my signature. HUGO DORNSEIF. 

